32

Percy Langford This was becoming a serious problem. Seraphina Zarkov had confessed to me three separate times within the last two months, and somehow each rejection only seemed to encourage her further. At first I handled it politely because she was Luciano’s younger sister and because, despite her behavior, she was still technically imperial royalty. That patience was rapidly dying. The princess treated boundaries like optional suggestions. Rules existed for other people, not for Seraphina. If she wanted attention, she took it. If she wanted chaos, she created it. And unfortunately for me, Seraphina had recently decided that what she wanted— was me. I had just returned from the western government wing after twelve straight hours of council meetings, military reports, and cleaning up